Studio couch



July 25, 1939. M. FOX

STUDIO COUCH Filed Oct. 9, 1936 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 M. FOX

STUDIO COUCH July 25, 1939.

' Filed Oct. 9, 1956 2 Sheets$heet 2 l l l um InUe/ZZ'O 7".'- Zia/M1 791,

Patented July 25, 1939 UNITED STATES STUDIO COUCH Martin Fox, Chicago, Ill., assignor to The Seng' Company, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of'Illinois Application October 9, 1936, Serial No. 104,795

3 Claims.

This invention relates in general to a folding bed of the studio couch type in which there is a rigid mattress supporting section supported by legs and open at the front to receive a foldable section carrying a mattress and movable to raise its mattress supporting section to the level of the stationary one. I

An important object of the invention is in the provision of mattress supporting frames connected together for parallel movement and extensible into alignment to form a bed.

A further object of the invention is in the provision of an improved raising and mattress supporting means on the movable section.

A still further object is in the provision of metal frames for a studio couch construction which are adapted to fold together compactly so that the structure will not be objectionably high when used as a seat, at the same time to provide for mattress sections of sufficient thickness so that they will be comfortable when the sections are extended into alignment to form a bed.

Other objects of the invention will appear hereinafter, the accompanying drawings illustrating a preferred embodiment of the invention, in which Fig. 1 is a perspective of the metal frame structure in accordance with the invention;

Fig. 2 is an end view of the structure in folded condition showing mattress sections carried by the frames; and

Fig. 3 is an end view of the movable structure in partially raised position.

Studio couches are usually composed of mattress sections carried by supporting frames. If both mattress sections are carried by the fixed frame an objectionably high seat is provided, and if one of the mattress sections is carried by a movable section the fixed seat frame must be sufficiently high to house the movable frame and a mattress section below it. The present invention overcomes these objections by providing a foldable frame which collapses flatly or close to the floor so that a mattress section of considerable thickness may be supported by it and still will slide freely below the fixed frame.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings the fixed mattress support comprises a top marginal frame 5 supported by front and rear legs 6 and 'l and the rear legs connected near their lower ends by a cross brace 8. Within the frame 5 a flexible mattress supporting fabric 9 of any suitable structure is yieldingly supported in a well known manner by helical springs I0.

The mattress supporting frame thus provided is open at its front to receive the movable mattress supporting section which is slidable beneath it. 7

The movable mattress supportingsection com- *5 prises end members I I, a front rail l2, anda rear rail I3, all rigidly connected together with vertical supports I4 attached at the front corners for supporting a front board !5. This movable frame is supported at the bottom by castors or rollers l6 and connecting the rear rail l3 and the rear rail 8 of the fixed section are crossed levers IT and 18 having a central pivot l9 and each lever connected having a fixed pivot 20 at one end and a sliding pivot 2| at the other end to provide a parallel motion guide for the movable frame. This keeps the frames in alignment and the engagement of the sliding pivots 2| at the end of their slots 22 limits the outward movement .of the movable frame.

Mounted in the movable frame is a raisable mattress supporting frame 23 having a flexible mattress supporting fabric 24 secured within the frame by helical springs 25, and the opposite sides of the frame being connected by crosspieces 26 which prevent the bowingor spreading of the rails to which they are connected due to a weight or undue tension of the mattress supporting fabric.

This mattress supporting frame 23 is supported at it sends and at the outer side by parallel motion devices each comprising a pair of crossed levers 21 and 28 connected together intermediate their ends by a pivot 29. The cross levers at the ends have fixed pivots 30 attaching them to the upper and lower frames and pivots 3| slidable in frame slots 32. The parallel motion device of the front side has fixed pivots 33 and pivots 34 slidable in slots 35 in brackets 36 attached to the upper and lower frames.

In order to raise and lower the mattress supporting frame 23 a hand lever 31 is pivoted at its lower end 38 at each end of the bottom frame and these levers are cross connected at their pivots by a bar 38 rotatable at its ends in the frame which forms pivots for the levers. Extending from each hand lever 3'! is a plate 49 carrying a pivot 4| at one side of the lever to which one end of an operating bar 42 is pivoted, the other end of the bar being connected to the 50 pivot 3| of the cross lever 21 which is slidable in the lower frame slot 32. A spring 43 also connected to the lower end of the cross lever 2'. at one extremity and to the rear cross rail 3 at its other extremity tends to draw the crossed levers 21 and 28 in a direction to raise the upper frame 23, at which time the pivots 3| will also engage the ends of the slot 32. g

Projecting from each hand lever 31 near the pivoted end is a fixed stop 39 and projecting from its crossed lever 28 is a rigid bracket 39a adapted to engage the stop Hand to limit the rearward or raising movement of the levers 31. In this "stop position the frame 23 is at its proper height and the sliding pivots 3| of thelevers 2T 7 are held at the ends of the slots 32. V

In order to lock the upper frame in its. raised or lowered position the pivot 4| carried by-the lowered position as shown by Fig. 2, thefr'e'e end of the hand lever is below the line joining the pivots 3| and 38 so'that in either. position it is necessary to manually operate the hand lever in order'to change the position of the upper frame 23. In its raised position the frame 23,is thus locked against movement in either chrection and can onlybe released and lowered by manual operation of the connected levers 31. When the frame. 23 is in its loweredposition a-manual lifting of the frameitself may be sufficient toovercome the lockingof the frame in its downward position as shown in; Fig. 2, in which case the springs 43 will carry thelocking lever over to its upper locking position as. shown in Fig. 1.

.When in actual usea'mattress'section 44 rests upon or is secured to the raisable frame ZS and a mattress section 45 rests .upon or is secured to the fixed supporting frame. 5. Thes'e mattress sectionsare preferably separate and of the same height orthickness so that when the. mat- V height of this frame from the fioor is. sufiicient to house the movable frame structureand also the mattress section 44 carried by it- This pro vides a studio couchstructure which is not too high from the floor-even though a mattress. section of considerable thickness is applied to the fixed frame, the fixed frame may be entirely enclosed and upholstered at the sides and back,

leaving the frontopen, and the front is closed by the front board l5 which may also-be suitably covered or upholstered to form a. neat. appearing v "oted intermediate their; ends, each lever having afixed pivotal connection at one end with. one frame, and a pivoted and sliding connection at the other end with the other frame; an operating lever pivoted lo the lower frame between the pivotal and sliding connections of the crossed levers with the frame and having a plate fixed to the lever and pivoted to a link connecting it to that end of the lever which has a pivoted and sliding connection with the lower frame for raising and lowering the upper frame; the pivotal connection of the link with plate of the operating lever being at one side of the'pivotal connection thereof to move it past a connecting center line between the pivotal; connection between the other end of the link and the pivoted' end of the lever, and stop means carried by the adjacent crossed lever for engaging stop means on the operating lever and limiting its movement in one direction so that the upper frame is locked fixedly in its raised position.

2. In a studio couch, a collapsible section hav oted' to the lower frame between the pivotal.

and sliding connections of the crossed levers with the frame and having a link connecting it to the end of the lever which has 'apivoted and sliding connection with the lower frame; stop means comprising a stfopv member on one of the crossed raising levers at each end, and a 00 operating stop on the operating lever adjacent thereto to engage the member when the upper frame is raised; 'and the operating lever having 7 V a laterallyextending plate for its pivotal connection with the link inwhich the pivot is offset rearwardly from the pivot of the lever itself so that the link pivot may be movedto one side orthe other of a line joining .the. other end pivot of the link and'the pivot of the lever to lock the lever in a position against the stop to hold. the upper frame in non-collapsible raised position and against movement in either direction from which it can be lowered only by man- 3. A studio couch construction in accordance with. claim 2. in which the pivoted and sliding connection includes a slot and a pivot attached to a lever and movable therein and the locking 'means for the operating lever tends tolock it rearwardly against the'said stop means so that the crossed frame supporting members are locked in raised position with their pivots at the ends of the slots for'lirniting the extending movement,

of the crossed levers oppositely in they slot in a collapsing direction whereby the upper frames are held upward in fixed position against move-p ment in either direction and can only be lowered by manual movement of the operating levers.

MARTIN Fox. 7 

